Pot holder



March 28, 1950 H. A, HAMM POT HOLDER Filed Aug. 10, 1946 IN V EN TOR. H ME/2 ,4. HAMM $5 A770 NEY Patented 28, 1956 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Claims.

This invention relates to a pot holder for lifting and handling hot pans, dishes and th like.

An object of the present invention is to provide such a pot holder which is simple and inexpensive in its construction, and one which can be discarded at a minimum cost after it has become soiled or damaged.

It is another object of the invention to provide a pot holder which is flexible and, at the same time, one which is relatively resilient so that it assumes normally substantially a fiat position and follows or corresponds to the contour of the opening and closing movements of the hand of the user when in use.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a pot holder having an uneven or roughened surface on either side thereof so as to prevent the holder from slipping from the hand of the user, and to prevent the pan or article being handled from slipping from the holder.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a pot holder made of a plurality of layers of paper which not only can be easily and conveniently manufactured at a relatively low cost but, at the same time, one which is effective in its use and protects the hand of the user.

Various other objects and advantages of this invention will be more apparent in the course of the following specification, and will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, there is shown for the purpose of illustration, one embodiment which my invention may assume in practice.

In these drawings:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the improved pot holder of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 44 of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a blank sheet of material from which my pot holder is formed.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the improved pot holder of my invention comprises a rectangular-shaped body member 2 consisting of a plurality of layers 3 of flexible and relatively resilient material, four in the present instance, superimposed one on the other, which are secured together at their edges preferably by a suitable adhesive material. It has been found that conventional two-way stretch crepe paper is a most satisfactory material for use, and this is one of the most important aspects of the invention. Also, such paper possesses the inherent characteristic of being relatively resilient which is another important aspect for a reason hereinafter to appear. Such crepe paper also is characterized in that it has a relatively rough surface which aids in gripping the holder and the articles to be grasped thereby. This roughened surface is provided by the wrinkles extending in one direction of the paper and the flute-like portions 4 extending in a transverse direction, which wrinkles and flute-like portions provide the twoway stretch characteristic. It has been found also that at least four layers of such paper are required to provide a body suficient in thickness for the necessary protection of the user against excessive heat.

While these layers of crepe paper may be formed and secured together in any suitable manner, it is preferable that the holder be made from a single piece of material folded and secured in the following manner. Attention is directed to Fig. 5 of the drawings in which there is provided a blank piece of material or crepe paper 5, rectangular in shape, having a flap portion 6 arranged centrally of and extending outwardly from one side thereof. Each side portion 1 of the blank is folded inwardly toward the other on the broken line 8 so as to lie over the central portion 9 of the blank with the edges l0 substantially abutting each other, as shown in the broken lines I l of Fig. 1. The lower portion of the blank is then folded over the upper portion centrally thereof on the broken line l2 so that the lower edge is now positioned flush with the broken line I3 adjacent the flap 6. The opposed surfaces along the edge of the first fold at 8 are then secured together, preferably by means of glue l5, or any other suitable adhesive, or may be stitched if desired. The flap 6 is then folded over the edges adjacent thereto and glued or otherwise secured, as at M, to the outer surface of the outer side of the blank similar to the pasting of the flap of an envelope so as to provide a rectangular-shaped body member, as shown in Fig. 1. This completes the forming of the body portion of the holder and as a result it will be seen that there is provided four thicknesses or layers of material or paper, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

After the body has been formed, preferably a hole l6 is provided therein at one corner extending through all four thicknesses of the material or paper which may be strengthened by a rein- 3 forcing eyelet i1 disposed around the hole on the outer surface of the outer layers, which hole is provided for hanging the holder on a hook or nail when not in use.

When in use, it will be understood that the pot older is adapted to be folded around the edge of the pan or dish or around the handle of the receptacle to be grasped. The pot holder is bent to a substantial U-shape when it is held in the hand of the user, and the holder will at all times follow and correspond to the opening and closing movements of the hand of the user when grasping the receptacle. This is important as it eliminates any danger of the holder from being displaced from the hand, which resultsin burning the hand on the hot receptacle, which oftentimes is experienced when a floppy cloth or similar type pot holder is used.

Also, the roughened surface of the holder provides not only a better gripping surface for the hand, but a better grip of the holder on the receptacle, thereby eliminating any danger of the holder slipping from the hand or the receptacle slipping from between the fold of the holder. After the holder has become soiled or damaged, it can be discarded and replaced by a new one at a relatively low cost.

While I have shown and described an embodiment which my invention may assume in practice, it will be understood that this embodiment is merely for the purpose of illustration and description, and that other forms may be devised within the scope of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A-pot holder of the class described comprising a body member consisting solely of a plurality of layers of fiexible crepe paper adhesively secured together along their edges, said paper having resilient characteristics whereby the holder assumes substantially a, .flat position when not in use and corresponds to the opening and closing movements of the hand of the user when being used.

2. A pot holder of the class described comprising a body member consisting of a plurality of layers of two-Way stretch crepe paper which is inherently resilient, whereby the holder normallyassumes a flat position and corresponds to the opening and closing movements of the hand of the user when being used, and presents a relatively rough surface on either side of the holder so as to prevent the holder from slipping from the hand of the user and the article being grasped from slipping from the holder.

3. A pot holder of the class described compris ing a body member consisting of a single piece of a flexible and relatively resilient paper, rectangular in shape, folded upon itself so as to pro vide a plurality of superimposed layers, said layers being secured together along their edges to provide a rectangular-shaped holder.

4. A pot holder of the class described comprising a body member consisting of a single piece of flexible and relatively resilient paper, rectangular in shape, two of the opposed edge portions of said paper being folded inwardly upon the cen- 'tral portion of the paper at a position substantially equal to one-fourth of its length so that the edges meet centrally of the paper, and folded centrally and transversely of said first mentioned folds so that the edges are flush with one another so as to provide four layers of paper, said first mentioned folds and said edges being secured together to provide a rectangular-shaped holder.

5. A p01; holder of the class described comprising a body member consisting solely of a plurality of layers of flexible crepe paper adhesively secured together along their edges, said paper having resilient characteristics whereby the holder assumes substantially a flat position when not in use and corresponds to the opening and closing movements of the hand of the user when being used, and is characterized in that it presents a relatively rough surface on either side of the holder so as to prevent the same from slipping from the hand of the user and the article being grasped from slipping from the holder.

HOMER ALEXANDER HAMM.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 580,148 Staples Apr. 6, 1897 647,549 Winteringer Apr. 17, 1900 1,899,892 DEste et a1 Feb. 28, 1933 2,235,313 Cleveland Mar. 18, 1941 2,375,129 Norton May 1, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 15.712 Australia Dec. 31, 1933 of 1933 413,779 Great Britain July 26, 1934 

